Author of

Macaron Tutorial

Saturday, August 07, 2010

If everything goes according to plan, I'll be home in France in two weeks. It's been four years since I have not been back and it was not for lack of planning or trying. Just happened that way. But now, as we get closer to the date, I buzz about even faster. As B. said "now you're like a buzzy bee on a sugar high"... There is so much to do, straighten out, finalize, revise...Things I don't want to do while away. People to see, places to be, milestones to celebrate. Life. Family. Time. Away.

I am already thinking about all the flavors of my childhood. Lavender fields, apricot jam and cherry clafoutis, cantaloupe with a splash of port wine, nectarines, barbecues and Champagne and cassis cocktails. Picking berries on the side of the roads by the Durance river. The juice of fresh peaches trickling down my chin, and my arm, and ruining my dress. But always leaving me happy happy.

I've always thought my little corner of Provence has some of the best stone fruit until I tried a Southern peach here. I can't even compare they are so different. South Carolina peaches are a treat for sure. Think about your favorite peach scented anything and there you have it. It sounds like it has magical powers doesn't it? Well it does. Right now, it makes the perfect dessert. Breakfast. Snack. I am even tempted to call it dinner tonight.

Imagine how giddy I was this week when I found myself the recipient of over 10 pounds of just ripe, just perfect peaches. Yeah. Giddy. It did not take me long to figure out what I wanted to do with them. Instincts kicked in and once back in the kitchen I started the little dance I'd do everytime at the restaurant. I started poaching, roasting, peeling, dicing...Pots and pans filled every corner of the stove and countertops. From savory to sweet, salsa to sorbet. Truly a good day.

The first thing I made though was galettes, free form tarts. I poached four peaches in jasmine tea, let them cool completely, peeled, pitted and sliced them thin. I used half a peach per galette, some I left all peach and some had a small handful of blueberries added to them. All were sprinkled with sugar infused with lemon thyme like I did previously in these Fresh Berries Tartelettes. Simply rub herbs and sugar together, can be citrus zest too, it works wonders!

I love how packed the summer gets. I love the epic heat of a day spent outdoors followed by stormy winds and thunderstorms. Summer. When rules are bent and time extends following the sunset. And mostly, right now, I love summer because of peach galettes....

Peach and Peach Blueberry Galettes With Lemon Thyme Sugar:

Makes 8 individual galettes (we share but you don't have to)

Notes: - I use lemon thyme a lot this year because our one little plant is going wild. Our lemon balm and mint have suffered from the heat but you could definitely use those flavor.Rosemary, oregano, chocolate mint and sweet basil work beautifully too. The sky is the limit!

- we are not fond of the taste of tapioca flour so I use cornstarch instead but feel free to use either or.

- If you are not baking gluten free, replace the rice, millet, sorghum flours and cornstarch with 1.5 cups of all purpose flour and omit the xanthan gum.

Prepare the crust:In a mixer, whip the butter on medium speed until light and airy. Add the egg yolks, one at a time and beating well after each addition. Mix until incorporated. Add the salt, and all the different flours, and the xantham gum and mix briefly. Add enough milk to moisten it. Dump the whole mixture onto a lightly floured (use more rice flour) board and gather the dough into a smooth ball. Flatten the dough into a disk, wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour.

Prepare the fruits:While the dough is resting, place the peaches, tea bag, sugar and enough water to cover the fruit in a large saucepan set over high heat. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and poach the peach until just fork tender. Remove from the heat and let them cool on a clean kitchen towel. Once cooled, peel and halve them, remove the pits and slice the peaches thin.

Prepare the sugar:In a small bowl, mix the sugar and lemon thyme together with your fingertips and set aside.

Preheat oven to 350F and position a rack in the center.When the dough is nice and cold, roll it out on a lightly floured board or in between two sheets of plastic. If the dough tears while you roll, just patch it with your fingertips. Cut eight 4-inch rounds, rerolling and using the dough as you go (ig it gets too soft, just refrigerate for a few minutes as you fill the other galettes with fruit).Arrange the slices of half a peach in the center of each round and gather the edges, pleating as you go with your fingertips (don't worry about being even - these are free form. Imperfections are wonderful anyways...). Add blueberries on top if desired and sprinkle with some lemon thyme sugar.

Place all the galettes on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for about 30-35 minutes.

These galettes with the sprigs of thyme are breathtaking! I bet the flavors are so wonderful. The rustic photos are stunning. Helen, you never cease to amaze me (I think I say that every post!!!)I hope your belly is feeling better. I was so worried about you yesterday :)Paris will be so wonderful, can't wait to read your reports from there.

Gosh they look so beautiful. Galettes are just about my favourite pastry food-- I think it's because they look so rustic. I love lemon and thyme together in dessert, but I'd never thought to put lemon slices in a galette before... thank you so much for sharing :).

Oh, I just looked at the picture again and realised that they were not lemon slices, but peach slices... and now I am no longer confused about where they were in the recipe. Forgive me, it's late... *smacks head*

I only have 3 garden paeaches left; I harvested mine this last week. I've been canning them, so lots of poaching, but I've never poached them in something. That sounds wonderful! I did buy 50 pounds of peaches today, so I can still have juice dripping down my arm. . .

But something else in your photos caught my eye today:

I have two benches at my house; one is teak and I oil it every year; the other is a very old bench that has black iron work like your bench in the photos above, but the slats need to be redone. I love the ironwork, but the rest of the bench was always boring. I LOVE the black slats! I will be redoing my bench now, and now I FINALLY know how to do it! Thank you for your photos today!

I haven't been in France since 1998, and though I only lived there a little over a year, I miss it like crazy. I live in the desert now, but I remember the gardens, the clouds (we don't get many clouds here; clouds make me think of France and Switzerland!), the hills, the architecture--and it was beautiful. The gardens of Clermont-Ferrand inspired me so much. I don't have wisteria here, but I am growing as much as I can in my garden here.

Those peaches are so beautifully perfect! I can almost smell the lovely sweet peach scent. And thanks for the recipe- it looks like one I will try out this summer. Have a wonderful time in France, and I hope we will get to hear all about your adventures and food, of course!

These galettes are so lovely, and a perfect way to showcase your peaches! I'm so glad that you're going to get to have a visit home. I know you'll have a wonderful time. BTW, did you know that August is National Peach Month? How appropriate!

It just be terribly exciting going hoje after all these years.such anticipation.i've never been to Provence buy I have heard such wonderful things about it.how lucky of you to get good peaches.I LOVE peaches buy unfortunatelly in the UK it is the one fruit that often disappoints. I tend to have lovely ones when I'm in the continent.

These galettes are sucha good idea, simple, easy and full of flavour. You can literally add what you like in them. I make savoury galettes. The last one i made was raclette, smoked turkey, red chilli, cornichons and baby potatoes. It was divine. I think i may have to try some sweet ones as my mouth is literally watering. Lovely post and photos!

You read my mind - I was just going to try a blueberry galette this week, but after seeing this, I think you've inspired me to add a little peach as well! Absolutely beautiful, Helene. These galettes are flawless.

Yeah, I think these are a perfect reason to love summer - peaches taste like summer to me. I've had galettes on the brain as well, since they sound so wonderfully no-fuss no-muss. Perfect for some of these ridiculously hot days we've been having!

I can just see you with delicious peach juice running down your arms! The tarts look so wonderful, I am going to try your pastry crust out with this wonderful filling. Do have a great time with family in the mother country :)

I envy you for being able to go to France for 2 weeks! What a fantastic country. I hope you have a relaxing time and reinvigorate yourself! The speed of life seems different there to me (maybe that's just my perception?) I think I need to try harder and find myself props for my photos because looking at your blog makes me feel so inspired!

Hello Helen - I adore your site, photos and your lovely pastries. I am making the peach and blueberry gallet as I comment here. I have never made a gallet before, but will do a review on my blog and send a link back to you. Thanks for sharing this beautiful dessert! Ina